Who/Where is my tribe?

[Annagain]

I'm very involved with my local riding club and would very much say they're my tribe. We all like different disciplines and the club tries to cater for everyone at whatever level they want - although those at the top levels tend to focus on one discipline rather than the 'jack of all trades' approach we have. We do lessons, little competitions, a camp every year, area competitions etc.

Spiritually, I'm an eventer rather than a dressage rider or showjumper although the last event I did was in 2016 for several reasons. I've never been very competitive and just competed as an opportunity to get out there doing it. These days I enjoy the social side of club lessons and competitions and riding for riding's sake. I also love hacking, exploring new places and the odd fun ride but don't feel I'm lacking a tribe because my interests are diverse.

 

[tristar]

With training these green horses, have a tribe of people who understood my approach and philosophy would be living the dream. It often feels so lonely.

i`m here, understand those feelings

no tribe, just a little band who hang out with the horses here, care for them, try to understand and give them input, all about training for the horse, the sun shines out of the horses, they inspire others, they are my tribe

many years ago went to dressage a lot, met great people lots of friends, but it was more about the horses than the social aspect, but the feeling was very supportive
don`t feel inclined to travel much these days, its all about the little steps with each horse, about the journey, the learning, the feelings of getting closer to the horses.

 

[Goldie's mum]

I started riding over 50 years ago and I've only been in a competition once . No one has ever deliberately made me feel out of the loop or inferior but I do sometimes feel that way & I think the feeling comes from childhood. There's a progression that you're meant to follow , out of "beginners" into the jumping class, from first to second ponies, then onto horses, up through "levels" etc and if you don't want to do that you end up riding with children that are younger than you are, which as a teenager feels kind of shameful.
I love hacking and lessons and fun rides, and yes ponies, but I have found myself apologizing for that sometimes. (I've finally got old enough that I can say I've retired from competing & get away with it but that's a lie!)

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I'm in the Martini tribe...... any time, any place, anywhere...

I was in the pony producing tribe, the coach tribe, the ott Tb retraining tribe, the dealer tribe, the pony club mother tribe and others, often with a simultaneous leg in several camps.

These days I'm a cheery old bat who enjoys mounted social events more than doing anything else, I even treat RC training or comps as a social..... and within reason (and expense) I do what I feel like doing ?

 

[BeansNsausages]

Horse people are nuts. Just stay away from them.

 

[palo1]

Horse people are nuts. Just stay away from them.

I quite like horse people generally - or at least when I have been travelling they have provided a sense of connection and support generally and I have met some amazing and inspiring horse people. Really though, horse people are just people. Same as those with dogs - and dog people can be pretty nuts too!! I am very at ease on my own with my horses and love my horsey friends; one of whom I would share anything with but yes, the self directed aspirations bit of not being in a tribe I think is the tricky thing! I am generally not really a 'joiner' and there is something viscerally difficult for me about things like riding club events; I instantly feel like the odd one out which is obviously more about me than 'them' lol but I haven't always felt like that with groups of horse people. I will ponder on this more this weekend!!

 

[Ratface]

I'm a polite loner. I prefer animals to people. The only tribe I am (possibly?) in is the one where specific parts of "my" breed unite. Given that the breed are generally an acquired taste, I can continue to be politely enthusiastic about anyone's horses/ponies.
However, their owners/riders/acolytes may be another matter . . .

 

[Ratface]

I'm a polite loner. I prefer animals to people. The only tribe I am (possibly?) in is the one where specific parts of "my" breed unite. Given that the breed are generally an acquired taste, I can continue to be politely enthusiastic about anyone's horses/ponies.
However, their owners/riders/acolytes may be another matter . . .

 

[teapot]

Great post OP!

I'm not sure where I sit to be honest. Life long not too shabby rs client but five years spent in the industry doing ops management/and a fair few exams means you have a different eye towards most things... I actually love riding different ones, I find it rewarding and fun seeing what tune I can get in 45mins/hour at a time.

 

[Dave's Mam]

I am very very lucky. I am on a big yard with a great community. A lot of us are members of the local riding club & we often go en masse to shows. Last one I think nearly the whole yard attended!
We have all sorts from dressage & jumping people to non ridden.
They are my tribe & I am so happy to be part of theirs.
(Got you lot in the evenings too!)

 

[Wishfilly]

I mean this nicely because I know we've disagreed on the hunting threads, but is hunting not your tribe? I sort of assumed the social side was the appeal of it to a lot of people?

By your definition of a tribe, I think I'm tribeless- I don't compete as no transport and it stresses me out anyway. I'm lucky I'm on a really nice DIY livery yard that makes me feel part of a tribe- even if that tribe is "people who work all week to enjoy our horses at the weekend".

 

[Landcruiser]

When I first had my own horses my tribe was my local Western club, but then I found TREC (and the western club disbanded due to our trainer moving away). TREC suits me very well indeed. Everyone is friendly, it's competitive but very supportive, you can use any horse, any tack, wear any clothes you like (within reason). You get to ride in some beautiful places, either with a partner or just you and your horse. You get to play over obstacles which are all based on things you might meet out hacking, but can be bonkers, and are always fun. There are lots of barefooters and bitless horses, and the ethos is very much horsemanship based. There is cake, there is gin, there is overnight camping with horses I'm without a competition horse at the moment so am volunteering as a judge/helper as often as I can.

 

[palo1]

I mean this nicely because I know we've disagreed on the hunting threads, but is hunting not your tribe? I sort of assumed the social side was the appeal of it to a lot of people?

By your definition of a tribe, I think I'm tribeless- I don't compete as no transport and it stresses me out anyway. I'm lucky I'm on a really nice DIY livery yard that makes me feel part of a tribe- even if that tribe is "people who work all week to enjoy our horses at the weekend".

Thank you for this; yes, hunting people are my tribe - there is a close bond between myself and that community in lots of ways. I feel part of that absolutely and it feels 'right' in terms of being me, where I live and other stuff too. BUT the equestrian bit is slightly different tbh. Most hunting folk I know are either just about hunting (which is fine) and turn their horses away at the end of the season or go off to do fun rides in the summer or are part of a bit of very established eventing/showing circuits etc. Those aren't really my thing as I am really interested in horses and developing new skills and the 'off season' from trail hunting is my time to do that. This is where I would like to find my 'tribe' (yes, greedy I know to want more than 1 tribe lol!!) I have equestrian skills developed through trail hunting that I am very proud of but I didn't really want to bring hunting in to this thread because...well, you know how that will go. As a horse rider I certainly don't want to be one-dimensional or become complacent/stuck in a particular rut and I am fascinated by horses and the huge variety of skills that we can develop working with them. My horses don't really get turned away for long; they have a rest at the end of the season but both of them are then unshod and actually need things to do to avoid vast fatness and deterioration of feet etc!!. It's also easier to learn new stuff, develop and train over the summer than in the winter/hunting season. I ride out with friends (some of which are good hunting friends) but I do want to explore as much of equestrian culture as I can and find a sense of belonging in the world of training/development of horsemanship/equestrianism. Sorry if that isn't very coherent - I was and am very reluctant to discuss hunting on HHO these days so I would rather stick to the bit of my life outwith that!!

 

[Wishfilly]

Thank you for this; yes, hunting people are my tribe - there is a close bond between myself and that community in lots of ways. I feel part of that absolutely and it feels 'right' in terms of being me, where I live and other stuff too. BUT the equestrian bit is slightly different tbh. Most hunting folk I know are either just about hunting (which is fine) and turn their horses away at the end of the season or go off to do fun rides in the summer or are part of a bit of very established eventing/showing circuits etc. Those aren't really my thing as I am really interested in horses and developing new skills and the 'off season' from trail hunting is my time to do that. This is where I would like to find my 'tribe' (yes, greedy I know to want more than 1 tribe lol!!) I have equestrian skills developed through trail hunting that I am very proud of but I didn't really want to bring hunting in to this thread because...well, you know how that will go. As a horse rider I certainly don't want to be one-dimensional or become complacent/stuck in a particular rut and I am fascinated by horses and the huge variety of skills that we can develop working with them. My horses don't really get turned away for long; they have a rest at the end of the season but both of them are then unshod and actually need things to do to avoid vast fatness and deterioration of feet etc!!. It's also easier to learn new stuff, develop and train over the summer than in the winter/hunting season. I ride out with friends (some of which are good hunting friends) but I do want to explore as much of equestrian culture as I can and find a sense of belonging in the world of training/development of horsemanship/equestrianism. Sorry if that isn't very coherent - I was and am very reluctant to discuss hunting on HHO these days so I would rather stick to the bit of my life outwith that!!

No, that's valid- I can understand wanting something to do in your long off-season and having a community to do that with!

I know you mention competing is unlikely to be a thing for a while, but how do you feel about endurance? It seems like something you/your horses would already have the skills for, but equally could progress in terms of increasing distance/improving gradings etc, and the community is usually really helpful and friendly. I think it's one of those things from the outside that seems straightforward but is actually very technical and involved- it's something I've only scratched the surface on personally but would love to have the opportunity to really explore one day!

Equally, I do feel like as a rider who really just schools and hacks from home, there can be a lack of sense of community and that is hard. And I definitely get wanting to improve and try new things without necessarily wanting competing to be the end goal! I do feel like there is sometimes a bit of underlying pressure to go out and compete whatever you are training with- but for me, in the past, that hasn't always been enjoyable, and it's hard to explain that to people!

 

[SBJT]

I had to think about this one as I sit in quite a few camps. Honestly I have people that I just enjoy their company and I can do whatever with. I find it as more of a community, but like I said to Caol Ila in the other thread, I am extremely lucky where I am right now. I think it’s more about the people that you just enjoy spending time with who have similar horsemanship or training opinions. It’s a tough one though and very hard especially when you move barns. Like I said out here I’m lucky as most people get along and have similar outlooks and no one is really out to prove anything. Plus they’re all Canadian therefore they’re just so damn polite!!

 

[scats]

Rethinking this a bit. I grew up on a yard with over 100 horses and I was there for 21 years. I met a huge number of people and made some lifelong friends. There’s not many horse people in my local area that I don’t know or know of.
Although me and a lot of my friends have now moved yards, we still keep in touch regularly. I suppose in reality my horsey tribe is the same tribe I’ve had for many, many years. My eclectic mix of friends. Some no longer have horses, some do. Very few compete. They range in age from younger to me to in their 70s. The friend I farm ride with is on a different yard to me, but we grew up together on our old yard and have known each other for nearly 30 years. And best horsey mate is a man in his 50s who I’ve known since I was 10.
I also have a lovely mix of non horsey friends too, which is great. Perhaps they are my non-horsey tribe. I’m the type of person who makes friends and keeps them and horses have been a brilliant way of socialising over the years. I enjoy meeting new people along the way, but I suppose I have such a lot of good and close friends that I don’t feel I need to belong to any other groups. I’m very lucky to be in the situation I’m in.
A good chunk of my customers are also friends from over the years. They are very loyal and came to me as soon as I opened. I did a dog yesterday for a lad I grew up with. He’s now married with kids and apart from having contact on FB, we haven’t really seen each other properly for 20 years, but he brought his dog to me and we had a lovely catch up.

I suppose this might be the reason that I don’t particularly want to get involved with any new communities, or feel the need to. I have met some lovely, friendly people out competing, but I suppose I don’t feel the need to make a connection with anyone.
My experience of professional dressage riders hasn’t actually been that great if I’m honest. Maybe we are just from worlds that are too different.

 

[palo1]

No, that's valid- I can understand wanting something to do in your long off-season and having a community to do that with!

I know you mention competing is unlikely to be a thing for a while, but how do you feel about endurance? It seems like something you/your horses would already have the skills for, but equally could progress in terms of increasing distance/improving gradings etc, and the community is usually really helpful and friendly. I think it's one of those things from the outside that seems straightforward but is actually very technical and involved- it's something I've only scratched the surface on personally but would love to have the opportunity to really explore one day!

Equally, I do feel like as a rider who really just schools and hacks from home, there can be a lack of sense of community and that is hard. And I definitely get wanting to improve and try new things without necessarily wanting competing to be the end goal! I do feel like there is sometimes a bit of underlying pressure to go out and compete whatever you are training with- but for me, in the past, that hasn't always been enjoyable, and it's hard to explain that to people!

Yes, the idea of endurance did interest me and I bought one horse with that in mind. I quite liked the community (especially locally) but actually the competitive nature of endurance meant that increasingly courses were faster, flatter, less complex (in terms of terrain) in order to enable people to make the speeds required for competitive success. I lost interest in progressing when I realised that far from riding across wilder, more rugged ground, I was likely to be doing loops of forestry, of places like Cirencester park (very nice on occasion but not particularly challenging in itself) and having to travel fairly significant distances to compete when I had wonderful terrain on my doorstep! I found increasingly that aspects of endurance were at odds with the kind of competitive philosophy that I was interested in and eventually the issues with the UAE, the use of comfort drips etc just switched me off. I was probably naive to think that endurance was about adventurous riding tbh and I did learn a great deal from my endurance experience which I am grateful for. But it wasn't 'me' and I was happy to walk away.

 

[Bernster]

I’ve never really clicked with any RC or groups like that but have built up a small but solid circle of horse friends over the years. So my tribe is a couple of my fellow liveries who are friends, my instructor who is also now a friend, and ex liveries who’ve moved away but we’re still in touch.

On the whole I like horsey people. They’re the only ones who enjoy talking about horses for so long. I try to avoid the more mad ones!

 

[Wishfilly]

Yes, the idea of endurance did interest me and I bought one horse with that in mind. I quite liked the community (especially locally) but actually the competitive nature of endurance meant that increasingly courses were faster, flatter, less complex (in terms of terrain) in order to enable people to make the speeds required for competitive success. I lost interest in progressing when I realised that far from riding across wilder, more rugged ground, I was likely to be doing loops of forestry, of places like Cirencester park (very nice on occasion but not particularly challenging in itself) and having to travel fairly significant distances to compete when I had wonderful terrain on my doorstep! I found increasingly that aspects of endurance were at odds with the kind of competitive philosophy that I was interested in and eventually the issues with the UAE, the use of comfort drips etc just switched me off. I was probably naive to think that endurance was about adventurous riding tbh and I did learn a great deal from my endurance experience which I am grateful for. But it wasn't 'me' and I was happy to walk away.

No that doesn't sound especially fun! I think if I ever had a horse that was seriously capable of endurance, I'd want to aim for something like the golden horseshoe or the red dragon ride rather than being especially focused on getting a fast time over a flat course- and I agree there are serious issues at the top levels. I've only ever done the local rides here in Cornwall, which I enjoyed because some of them are in fantastic places where you otherwise don't really get to ride! But I only ever really did it for a nice day out!

Maybe someone needs to invent a new sport of "adventurous hacking" or something!

 

[palo1]

No that doesn't sound especially fun! I think if I ever had a horse that was seriously capable of endurance, I'd want to aim for something like the golden horseshoe or the red dragon ride rather than being especially focused on getting a fast time over a flat course- and I agree there are serious issues at the top levels. I've only ever done the local rides here in Cornwall, which I enjoyed because some of them are in fantastic places where you otherwise don't really get to ride! But I only ever really did it for a nice day out!

Maybe someone needs to invent a new sport of "adventurous hacking" or something!

The Red Dragon is a fabulous ride and I have competed in the bigger rides as well as the pleasure rides there; it really is the kind of ride endurance should be about imo! Last time I did that ride I did see some very tired horses which was a bit sad however and it is difficult for competitors to work the RD ride with some of the other championships. It is also much harder to achieve the advanced speeds on that terrainso I think that puts some (but not all!) people off. I haven't ridden the Golden Horseshoe but yes, I agree, that would be a good one too. I have done Man V Horse which is different again but also a great deal of forestry tracks. That is a amazing event for the atmosphere and my hot headed horse was brilliant when I competed; not remotely phased by the parade and all the razzmataz (Well it is Wales after all!). In order to be competitive at that ride you probably need to have a horse with legs like iron bars and to be able to turn that horse away afterwards, possibly for some months. It's not something I am desperate to compete in again though I enjoyed my experience of it.

 

[palo1]

No that doesn't sound especially fun! I think if I ever had a horse that was seriously capable of endurance, I'd want to aim for something like the golden horseshoe or the red dragon ride rather than being especially focused on getting a fast time over a flat course- and I agree there are serious issues at the top levels. I've only ever done the local rides here in Cornwall, which I enjoyed because some of them are in fantastic places where you otherwise don't really get to ride! But I only ever really did it for a nice day out!

Maybe someone needs to invent a new sport of "adventurous hacking" or something!

Adventure riding is a thing but not massive in the UK; we are all probably far too health and safety conscious lol!!

 

[Wishfilly]

The Red Dragon is a fabulous ride and I have competed in the bigger rides as well as the pleasure rides there; it really is the kind of ride endurance should be about imo! Last time I did that ride I did see some very tired horses which was a bit sad however and it is difficult for competitors to work the RD ride with some of the other championships. It is also much harder to achieve the advanced speeds on that terrainso I think that puts some (but not all!) people off. I haven't ridden the Golden Horseshoe but yes, I agree, that would be a good one too. I have done Man V Horse which is different again but also a great deal of forestry tracks. That is a amazing event for the atmosphere and my hot headed horse was brilliant when I competed; not remotely phased by the parade and all the razzmataz (Well it is Wales after all!). In order to be competitive at that ride you probably need to have a horse with legs like iron bars and to be able to turn that horse away afterwards, possibly for some months. It's not something I am desperate to compete in again though I enjoyed my experience of it.

Those are some proper bucket list rides! It's a shame that there aren't more rides like red dragon and golden horseshoe, because as you say that, to me, is what endurance should be about - but I can also understand it's maybe a bit different to the usual Fei endurance!

 

[paddy555]

Those are some proper bucket list rides! It's a shame that there aren't more rides like red dragon and golden horseshoe, because as you say that, to me, is what endurance should be about - but I can also understand it's maybe a bit different to the usual Fei endurance!

perhaps endurance should be about cavalry rides.

this is what cavalry rides are to save anyone time googling. .


Cavalry is simple, You can use what you can carry. You have to carry it all the way, (can't drop it off). You can drop off trash. You can't use other peoples stuff even if they leave it out for you. For example, I asked if I could carry a chair? The Ride Manager looked puzzled as to how/why I thought I could carry a chair, but said sure but you have to carry it the whole way. I am sure a vision of some fool trying to drag a Lazy Boy recliner over Shermans Gap crossed his mind. But I had a 3 legged lightweight camp stool. I could sit on a rock or a stump, but not somebodys buckets,tailgate or even a bale of hay. So the stool made the trip.

Since water was available, then my goal was to carry as little liquid stuff as possible. The big alfalfa cubes in zip locks became my grass and hay for the two vet checks with little grass. I added water into the zip locks at those checks and "presto magic" we had horse feed. Gatorade for me was little packets I could add to water.


this is the article it was taken from.
http://stories.endurance.net/2007/06/riding-cavalry-at-2007-old-dominion-100.html

 

[palo1]

Those are some proper bucket list rides! It's a shame that there aren't more rides like red dragon and golden horseshoe, because as you say that, to me, is what endurance should be about - but I can also understand it's maybe a bit different to the usual Fei endurance!

Yes! Something I have loved but not made enough time for is riding and camping; we have done that with our children and their ponies over a very remote lot of mountain to a handy near-the-mountain field where we have stayed overnight. It really feels like a 'thing'!! That is something I love and would like to do more of but logistically it can be complex!! Even so I hope OH and I can find a bit more time soon. Ideally in fact we would ride to a pub/ B&B lol. I keep meaning to try to cross Wales but that takes a fair bit of logistical support so it is more of a long term goal.

 

[palo1]

perhaps endurance should be about cavalry rides.

this is what cavalry rides are to save anyone time googling. .


Cavalry is simple, You can use what you can carry. You have to carry it all the way, (can't drop it off). You can drop off trash. You can't use other peoples stuff even if they leave it out for you. For example, I asked if I could carry a chair? The Ride Manager looked puzzled as to how/why I thought I could carry a chair, but said sure but you have to carry it the whole way. I am sure a vision of some fool trying to drag a Lazy Boy recliner over Shermans Gap crossed his mind. But I had a 3 legged lightweight camp stool. I could sit on a rock or a stump, but not somebodys buckets,tailgate or even a bale of hay. So the stool made the trip.

Since water was available, then my goal was to carry as little liquid stuff as possible. The big alfalfa cubes in zip locks became my grass and hay for the two vet checks with little grass. I added water into the zip locks at those checks and "presto magic" we had horse feed. Gatorade for me was little packets I could add to water.


this is the article it was taken from.
http://stories.endurance.net/2007/06/riding-cavalry-at-2007-old-dominion-100.html

I love the sound of those French rides (Randonee) which are not endurance rides but long rambles with lovely lunches!! Those people could deffo be my tribe hahahahaha!!

 

[Wishfilly]

Yes! Something I have loved but not made enough time for is riding and camping; we have done that with our children and their ponies over a very remote lot of mountain to a handy near-the-mountain field where we have stayed overnight. It really feels like a 'thing'!! That is something I love and would like to do more of but logistically it can be complex!! Even so I hope OH and I can find a bit more time soon. Ideally in fact we would ride to a pub/ B&B lol. I keep meaning to try to cross Wales but that takes a fair bit of logistical support so it is more of a long term goal.

Years ago I went for a riding holiday with one of the stables who do a cross Wales trail and it is definitely on my list of things I'd love to do! I think logistically with your own horses it is complex though!

I think, in a way, it is quite sad a lot of these tribes revolve around competing and not everyone (me) is competitive, and it would be great if there were more events which are truly about challenging yourself and your horse, rather than aiming to win. I know theoretically you can go out to events and just aim to improve, but that in itself takes a lot of self confidence!

 

[milliepops]

I hacked my loan horse back to his owner on a week long trek. logistics were challenging but not impossible for a ride of that length, i managed a week without any support by dropping stuff off at my overnight stops the day before we set off

finding the overnight stops in the first place was the biggest challenge tho, at that point there wasn't a lot of info online so it was mainly flicking thru the yellow pages and phoning farms and stables to beg a paddock or stable

 

[Cob Life]

A post on the thread about Western riding made me think...about the sense of 'belonging' within equestrianism. I know a lot of us have fairly confirmed equestrian identities as dressage riders, eventers etc which ime is a good feeling. But what about those that don't feel they have a 'tribe' ? I am there right now really as competing looks very unlikely for quite a while and I am not entirely sure in any case that I want all the 'extras' that go with competing (not just financially). I do want that sense of freedom, of simplicity in the experience of riding that I had as a child but I also want to develop in skill, knowledge etc - as I know others do too. That process of learning outwith a discipline feels...messy, and a bit lonely. Clinics are great but I have found most people use them, very reasonably, to advance skill within an existing discipline. Lessons with a good trainer in any sphere are invaluable too and I love lessons. But that still leaves me a bit lonely, tribe-less!! I do have a great circle albeit quite small of lovely horsey friends and my family are all horsey too so that is a real tribe lol but a wider community seems a bit lacking. I think HHO is a great resource as well and I am not sure where this post is going tbh but I am interested to hear how others find their 'tribe'. I have competed previously and loved most disciplines and the communities around them but I am not in that space at the moment. I am a very happy hacker but the connotations of that term here in the UK feel a bit 'static' and unambitious in horsemanship terms. What possible tribes are out there for people like me?

I feel like we need to start a tribe! We seem to be in a similar boat

I don’t currently compete (looking to next year), I will jump tiny but much more interested in flat work, but I wouldn’t say I’m a dressage rider. I’m on a private yard alone most of the time apart from my weekly lesson at my instructors.

Im bringing one back into work after her having 4 years off so progress is slow but rewarding, looking into doing some western with her, the other we’re starting to really make progress with his flat work and starting to school more lateral work (we have shoulder in and leg yields down pat so looking to move towards working on renvers and travers) and simple changes, I think he will pick up flying charges much easier than the simple changes as his weakest area is his canter transitions

Basically I’m up for giving most stuff a good go! but don’t take any of it too seriously

 

[palo1]

It's interesting to hear so many different experiences and ideas here. I like the 'structure' and organisation of competing because generally, at least in the UK, it precludes the personality cult thing that non-competitive 'schools of horsmanship' seem to suffer (eg Parelli etc). I have experienced several clinics where there is that in evidence too and whilst the chief personality can be fairly benign or even inspiring, there are always some acolytes that seem a bit territorial and a bit fixed which makes conversation around some issues a bit frustrating. I like the progressive nature of competition too; on the whole you can travel along a pre-set pathway, even if you are mumbling under your breath about certain aspects of that pathway. I like the fact that in the UK our competitive organisations try to make things fair and accessible and I like the niche chat, as I have said before and the sense of shared endeavour which can be very supportive.

Lone-rangering is a lovely place to be too; no one to answer to but yourself, goals of your own and timescales that you can set with your own trainers, events etc, friends in support to cheer you on. In some ways that is the best alternative to a 'formal' tribe but it can be a bit lonely. Those days when it's just you, in the rain, with a problem and no 'end-goal' to motivate you to keep going are more likely to result in being dispirited and wanting to 'give up' (on whatever you are hoping to achieve) in my experience. Yesterday as I worked through another fitness level piece of work, cantering over the open hills all on my own I thought that was utter bliss and I could really concentrate on the aspects of riding and fittening exactly as I wanted. (yesterday, senior naughty horse was remembering, with assistance, that it IS possible to canter sensibly on a long rein in endless open country - it was lovely to revisit that lesson and we worked together without an argument till we got that nicely) Heaven!! I will be doing the same again today with horse no 2 though I will have different specific things to work on and things to play with. Currently working on walk to canter, leg yielding and posssibly playing with baby flying changes. There is no end game for that other than my own satisfaction and knowing that my horse should benefit physically from fairly light weight sort of flat work! But being your own critic is NOT always the most effective way of progressing - we can end up stumped with some problems/issue or either we are too hard on ourselves or we can't see what to improve and HOW to do that which a more competitive community can really help with (trainers/coaches can help with this too on a 1-1 basis). There really is something useful about communities for me!!

 

[palo1]

I hacked my loan horse back to his owner on a week long trek. logistics were challenging but not impossible for a ride of that length, i managed a week without any support by dropping stuff off at my overnight stops the day before we set off

finding the overnight stops in the first place was the biggest challenge tho, at that point there wasn't a lot of info online so it was mainly flicking thru the yellow pages and phoning farms and stables to beg a paddock or stable

COOL!! How far did you have to go? I am hoping to plan a couple of days of this for fun - I could ride all the way across Wales but probably not this summer lol.